West Ham United midfielder Hawa Cissoko says that the English gym culture has helped her improve her conditioning.
The 24-year-old French international struggled with injury during the first half of last season but she ended the campaign in impressive fashion, her physical game being a significant factor in The Hammers’ successful survival bid.
Cissoko made six starts for West Ham United in their end of season run-in. Olli Harder’s side kept three clean sheets in those games as they collected the points required to stay up.
When speaking to FAWSL Full-Time in a recent FAWSL media session, Cissoko said that being encouraged to work hard in the gym has really improved her match conditioning further ahead of the new season.
“We are having a team gym session at the moment and some players want to do more because we can ask the physical trainer about specific areas to work on;” Cissoko said. “This season, I have asked him to do some work on being on the front-foot because I am fast but want to be faster and I want to be more powerful to run faster.
“In this league, all of the players are really, really fast and strong. I was really impressed with this because in France it is completely different. In France, we don’t really like the gym, it is not our thing, in fact we really don’t like this. Here I am really impressed with the mentality of the girls, they really like the gym. Now I look at other players and think that I have to do the same and be like them.
“During my injury, I worked hard with the physio and the physical trainer and that is why I am strong, fast and physical. They made me work really hard.”
Reflecting on her form towards the end of last season, Cissoko did not shy away from the positive impact that she made, commenting that her playing style combined well with the homegrown players in the West Ham United squad.
She added “I think I had a good impact in the team and I maybe brought a different kind of energy and aggression. I am French and I play completely different, when my style is mixed with the team, something good happened.
“In my head I thought we had nothing to lose, just everything to win so I was on the pitch without pressure, I was playing my game and enjoying the moment. Some of the players may have been feeling the pressure of a relegation battle but I was sure that we would stay up, I was confident.
“This season, I hope that I will do exactly the same job, more if I can and I hope that I have more game time to prove to everyone that I deserve to be here. I am not here as a tourist, I am here to do something great for this club.”
West Ham United and Cissoko begin the new season at Brighton & Hove Albion on Sunday afternoon.
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